Leonardo da Vinci was one of the greatest painters of all time. He was born on April 15, 1452. His mom and his father were never married when he was born. His mom was Catrina, a poor house wife. Since he had no last name he was called Leonardo of Vinci, in Spanish it's Leonardo Da Vinci. He was given to his father when he was around two years old. His dad got remarried and Leonardo was not allowed to go to Florence with them. So, it was decided he would stay with his grandparents and his uncle. His uncle's name was Francesco and he followed him around the vineyards and fields. He was sent to art school in Florence. He was the apprentice of the famous artist Verrocchio. It is said that after seeing Leonardo paint an angel in one of his paintings, Verochio never picked a paintbrush up again. He was really talented and he went his own ways after that. He soon worked for the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza.Leonardo did oil paintings, Frescoes,tempera and sfumato's. sfumato means smuged. He painted one of the best paintings ever, the Mona Lisa. Leonardo started to work on the Mona Lisa in around 1503. He finished it three of four years later. It was an oil painting. It was a picture of Francesco de Gioconda, a rich merchant of Florence's, young wife. The Mona Lisa is wearing no fancy jewelry. She wasn't that happy of a person, so Leonardo had to hire acrobats, musicians, and entertainers to keep her smiling. After Leonardo finished the painting, he loved it so much that he kept it with him wherever he would go.
Leonardo da Vinci for Kids. By:Janis Herbert